1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image recording method.
2. Description of the Related Art
As image recording methods for forming an image on a recording medium such as paper based on an image data signal, there are recording methods such as an electrophotographic method, sublimation-type and melting-type thermal transfer methods, and an ink jet method.
In the ink jet recording method, a printing plate is not required, and an image is directly formed on a recording medium by jetting an ink only to an image forming portion. Therefore, in this method, the ink can be efficiently used, and the running cost is low. Furthermore, a printing device used in the ink jet recording method is relatively cheaper than a printer used in the related art, can be downsized, and causes little noise. In this way, the ink jet recording method has various advantageous compared to other image recording methods.
When an image is recorded on a recording medium by the ink jet recording method, the water in an aqueous ink cleaves hydrogen bonds of cellulose in paper as a recording medium, the cleaved hydrogen bonds are recombined after drying, and this leads to a phenomenon (curling or cockling) in which the recording medium is deformed.
In order to prevent the deformation of the recording medium, a method of adding an anti-curl agent such as a saccharide to an ink, a method of forcibly preventing the curling or cockling by using a paper pressing mechanism of a transport portion, and the like have been suggested. However, none of these methods has succeeded in sufficiently preventing the deformation of the recording medium.
Furthermore, a technique is also examined in which a layer (barrier layer) for preventing the permeation of an aqueous ink is formed on a recording medium so as to prevent the aqueous ink from permeating the inside of the recording medium and to prevent the curling or cockling of the recording medium on which an image has been formed.
For example, JP1999-28417A (JP-H11-28417A) describes an ink jet recording medium in which an ink adsorbing coating film containing a specific polymer compound and a hydroxy group-containing polymer compound is on the surface of a substrate. JP1999-28417A (JP-H11-28417A) describes that, when the recording medium is used for ink jet recording, the occurrence of curling is inhibited.
JP2010-23339A describes that, by treating a recording medium with an aqueous treatment solution containing a water-soluble polymer before recording an image by an ink jet, the occurrence of bleeding of the image or color mixing is inhibited, and the occurrence of curling or cockling of the recording medium is also inhibited.
JP2009-226598A describes that, by forming a blocking layer containing resin particles having an SP value of equal to or greater than 9.5 on a recording medium, the occurrence of curling of the recording medium on which an image has been formed is inhibited.